In this book, an international team of fourteen scholars investigates the Chinese reception of In... more In this book, an international team of fourteen scholars investigates the Chinese reception of Indian Buddhist ideas, especially in the sixth and seventh centuries. Topics include Buddhist logic and epistemology (pramāṇa, yinming); commentaries on Indian Buddhist texts; Chinese readings of systems as diverse as Madhyamaka, Yogācāra and tathāgatagarbha; the working out of Indian concepts and problematics in new Chinese works; and previously under-studied Chinese evidence for developments in India. The authors aim to consider the ways that these Chinese materials might furnish evidence of broader Buddhist trends, thereby problematizing a prevalent notion of “sinification”, which has led scholars to consider such materials predominantly in terms of trends ostensibly distinctive to China. The volume also tries to go beyond seeing sixth- and seventh-century China primarily as the age of the formation and establishment of the Chinese Buddhist “schools”. The authors attempt to view the ide...
A perplexing concept is usually a hallmark of the creativity of the thinker who conceived it. In ... more A perplexing concept is usually a hallmark of the creativity of the thinker who conceived it. In the history of Buddhist philosophy, arthakriyā (effective action) is such a concept, which is credited to Dharmakīrti, one of the most creative and influential Buddhist thinkers. Although this term did not originate with him, he developed the concept into one of the key tenets of his own complicated philosophy and of subsequent Buddhist thinking. Some contemporary scholars have attempted to trace this Dharmakīrtian concept to early Buddhist sources. Nagatomi (1967–68, 64–67) traced arthakriyā to the Abhidharma sources, but he seemed to head in the wrong direction by focusing on a curious concept, nengsheng 能生. Akimoto (2004) made a pioneering study that explicitly spells out the continuity between the Vaibhās.ika concept of kāritra (activity) and the Dharmakīrtian concept of arthakriyā. In this article, I will study more carefully the relationship of arthakriyā with the Vaibhās.ika concept of kāritra and the concept of nirvyāpāra (nonactivity) as found in Dignāga, Vasubandhu and the early Yogācāras. I will examine some major works of these Buddhist philosophers and their many commentators, focusing on their concepts of effective action (arthakriyā), activity (kāritra) and nonactivity (nirvyāpāra), and demonstrate the following main points:
Abstract The problem of empty terms is one of the focal issues in analytic philosophy. Russell&am... more Abstract The problem of empty terms is one of the focal issues in analytic philosophy. Russell's theory of descriptions, a proposal attempting to solve this problem, attracted much attention and is considered a hallmark of the analytic tradition. Scholars of Indian and ...
In a short article entitled 'Did Dignāga accept four types of perception?' published in the Journ... more In a short article entitled 'Did Dignāga accept four types of perception?' published in the Journal of Indian Philosophy in 1993, Franco propounds the view that Dignāga (ca. 480-540) accepts only three types of perception, namely, sense, mental and yogic perception. As a matter of fact, he was not the first one to propagate this view. Those who agree with him include some eminent scholars in the field of Dignāga and Buddhist epistemological studies, such as Hattori, Nagatomi, Nagatomo, and Schmithausen. 2 The only person that seemed to go against this prevailing view, according to Franco, was Wayman. In his article targeted by Franco, Wayman himself, however, does not provide any solid evidence that Dignāga actually accepts one more type of perception, i.e., selfcognition (svasam. vedana). 3 Therefore, it seems that Franco and others have reached a convincing conclusion on this issue. 4 In the course of my study of Dignāga and his doctrine of selfcognition, however, I find some evidence supporting Wayman's claim that Dignāga accepts four types of perception. The evidence is found in Dignāga's own writings and in the commentatorial works of Kuiji (632-682), a Chinese Yogācāra scholar. As we know, more than twenty works are ascribed to Dignāga. Among them, twelve are extant in Tibetan and six in Chinese. As far as the current issue is concerned, the following works are extremely important: the Nyāyamukha (hereafter NM), the Pramān. asamuccaya (hereafter PS), and its auto-commentary the Pramān. asamuccayavr. tti (hereafter PSV). NM is an introductory work to Buddhist logic. It is only extant in Chinese and has been very influential among East Asian Buddhists. This work contains a small section discussing the concept of perception in the system of pramān. a theory. PS 1 This article is based on part of the Chapter 5 of my dissertation (Yao, 2002).
... Make? Edited by Georges Dreyfus and Sara McClintock Vajrayoginī Her Visualizations, Rituals, ... more ... Make? Edited by Georges Dreyfus and Sara McClintock Vajrayoginī Her Visualizations, Rituals, and Forms Elizabeth English Page 5. Publisher's ... 1292. (After Zhejiang Sheng Wenwu Kaogu Yenjiu Suo, Xihu Shiku, pl. 107.) Fig. 2 ...
Phenomenology 2005, I: Selected Essays from Asia (Bucharest: Zeta Books), 2007
Dharmakīrti’s theory of negative judgments grew out of extensive discussions and debates on the c... more Dharmakīrti’s theory of negative judgments grew out of extensive discussions and debates on the cognition of nonexistent objects (asad-ālambana-vijñāna) among various Buddhist and Indian philosophical schools. As is well-known, a similar debate on the objectless presentations (gegenstandslose Vorstellungen) happened in the early development of phenomenology and analytic philosophy. Among various opinions on this controversial issue, I fi nd that Dharmakīrti and Husserl hold similar views. Both of them have less interest in redefi ning the ontological status of non-existent objects than Russell and Meinong. Rather they engage themselves in analyzing the experiential structure of negative cognition and come up with a similar conclusion that negative judgments presuppose affi rmative perceptions. Th is study will enrich our understanding of both thinkers. Th e copyright on this essay belongs to the author. Th e work is published here by permission of the author and can be cited as Phen...
In this book, an international team of fourteen scholars investigates the Chinese reception of In... more In this book, an international team of fourteen scholars investigates the Chinese reception of Indian Buddhist ideas, especially in the sixth and seventh centuries. Topics include Buddhist logic and epistemology (pramāṇa, yinming); commentaries on Indian Buddhist texts; Chinese readings of systems as diverse as Madhyamaka, Yogācāra and tathāgatagarbha; the working out of Indian concepts and problematics in new Chinese works; and previously under-studied Chinese evidence for developments in India. The authors aim to consider the ways that these Chinese materials might furnish evidence of broader Buddhist trends, thereby problematizing a prevalent notion of “sinification”, which has led scholars to consider such materials predominantly in terms of trends ostensibly distinctive to China. The volume also tries to go beyond seeing sixth- and seventh-century China primarily as the age of the formation and establishment of the Chinese Buddhist “schools”. The authors attempt to view the ide...
A perplexing concept is usually a hallmark of the creativity of the thinker who conceived it. In ... more A perplexing concept is usually a hallmark of the creativity of the thinker who conceived it. In the history of Buddhist philosophy, arthakriyā (effective action) is such a concept, which is credited to Dharmakīrti, one of the most creative and influential Buddhist thinkers. Although this term did not originate with him, he developed the concept into one of the key tenets of his own complicated philosophy and of subsequent Buddhist thinking. Some contemporary scholars have attempted to trace this Dharmakīrtian concept to early Buddhist sources. Nagatomi (1967–68, 64–67) traced arthakriyā to the Abhidharma sources, but he seemed to head in the wrong direction by focusing on a curious concept, nengsheng 能生. Akimoto (2004) made a pioneering study that explicitly spells out the continuity between the Vaibhās.ika concept of kāritra (activity) and the Dharmakīrtian concept of arthakriyā. In this article, I will study more carefully the relationship of arthakriyā with the Vaibhās.ika concept of kāritra and the concept of nirvyāpāra (nonactivity) as found in Dignāga, Vasubandhu and the early Yogācāras. I will examine some major works of these Buddhist philosophers and their many commentators, focusing on their concepts of effective action (arthakriyā), activity (kāritra) and nonactivity (nirvyāpāra), and demonstrate the following main points:
Abstract The problem of empty terms is one of the focal issues in analytic philosophy. Russell&am... more Abstract The problem of empty terms is one of the focal issues in analytic philosophy. Russell's theory of descriptions, a proposal attempting to solve this problem, attracted much attention and is considered a hallmark of the analytic tradition. Scholars of Indian and ...
In a short article entitled 'Did Dignāga accept four types of perception?' published in the Journ... more In a short article entitled 'Did Dignāga accept four types of perception?' published in the Journal of Indian Philosophy in 1993, Franco propounds the view that Dignāga (ca. 480-540) accepts only three types of perception, namely, sense, mental and yogic perception. As a matter of fact, he was not the first one to propagate this view. Those who agree with him include some eminent scholars in the field of Dignāga and Buddhist epistemological studies, such as Hattori, Nagatomi, Nagatomo, and Schmithausen. 2 The only person that seemed to go against this prevailing view, according to Franco, was Wayman. In his article targeted by Franco, Wayman himself, however, does not provide any solid evidence that Dignāga actually accepts one more type of perception, i.e., selfcognition (svasam. vedana). 3 Therefore, it seems that Franco and others have reached a convincing conclusion on this issue. 4 In the course of my study of Dignāga and his doctrine of selfcognition, however, I find some evidence supporting Wayman's claim that Dignāga accepts four types of perception. The evidence is found in Dignāga's own writings and in the commentatorial works of Kuiji (632-682), a Chinese Yogācāra scholar. As we know, more than twenty works are ascribed to Dignāga. Among them, twelve are extant in Tibetan and six in Chinese. As far as the current issue is concerned, the following works are extremely important: the Nyāyamukha (hereafter NM), the Pramān. asamuccaya (hereafter PS), and its auto-commentary the Pramān. asamuccayavr. tti (hereafter PSV). NM is an introductory work to Buddhist logic. It is only extant in Chinese and has been very influential among East Asian Buddhists. This work contains a small section discussing the concept of perception in the system of pramān. a theory. PS 1 This article is based on part of the Chapter 5 of my dissertation (Yao, 2002).
... Make? Edited by Georges Dreyfus and Sara McClintock Vajrayoginī Her Visualizations, Rituals, ... more ... Make? Edited by Georges Dreyfus and Sara McClintock Vajrayoginī Her Visualizations, Rituals, and Forms Elizabeth English Page 5. Publisher's ... 1292. (After Zhejiang Sheng Wenwu Kaogu Yenjiu Suo, Xihu Shiku, pl. 107.) Fig. 2 ...
Phenomenology 2005, I: Selected Essays from Asia (Bucharest: Zeta Books), 2007
Dharmakīrti’s theory of negative judgments grew out of extensive discussions and debates on the c... more Dharmakīrti’s theory of negative judgments grew out of extensive discussions and debates on the cognition of nonexistent objects (asad-ālambana-vijñāna) among various Buddhist and Indian philosophical schools. As is well-known, a similar debate on the objectless presentations (gegenstandslose Vorstellungen) happened in the early development of phenomenology and analytic philosophy. Among various opinions on this controversial issue, I fi nd that Dharmakīrti and Husserl hold similar views. Both of them have less interest in redefi ning the ontological status of non-existent objects than Russell and Meinong. Rather they engage themselves in analyzing the experiential structure of negative cognition and come up with a similar conclusion that negative judgments presuppose affi rmative perceptions. Th is study will enrich our understanding of both thinkers. Th e copyright on this essay belongs to the author. Th e work is published here by permission of the author and can be cited as Phen...
Preface Abbreviations 1 Introduction 2 Origin: Mahasaaghika 2.1 The Origin of Self-Cognition 2.2 ... more Preface Abbreviations 1 Introduction 2 Origin: Mahasaaghika 2.1 The Origin of Self-Cognition 2.2 The Mahasaaghika Theory of Self-Cognition 2.2.1 Mahasaaghika and Its Abhidharma 2.2.2 All-Knowing Awareness 2.2.3 The Self-Cognition of the Mind and Mental Activities 2.2.4 - Rang rig pa yin no" 2.2.5 Influence on Yogacara 2.3 The Andhakas' Arguments for Self-Cognition 2.3.1 The Andhakas 2.3.2 Awareness of the Present 2.3.3 Attending to All at Once 3 Refutation: Sarvastivada 3.1 Sarvastivada Abhidharma 3.2 Awareness of Single Moment 3.3 Refutation of Self-Awareness 3.3.1 Causality 3.3.2 The Similes 3.3.3 Epistemology 3.3.4 Soteriology 3.3.5 Self and Other 3.3.6 The Particular and Universal 3.4 Discussion of Self-Consciousness 3.4.1 Consciousness and Awareness 3.4.2 Can Consciousness Know Itself? 3.5 Two Minds and Memory 3.5.1 Can Two Minds Function Simultaneously? 3.5.2 How is Memory Possible? 3.6 The Problem of Self-Feeling 3.6.1 Awareness of Feeling 3.6.2 Self-Feeling and Self-Cognition 3.6.3 Three Types of Perception 4 Synthesis: Sautrantika 4.1 Sautrantika: Sources 4.2 Multiple Minds 4.2.1 Minds Arising Successively 4.2.2 How Does the Mind Know Itself? 4.3 Mental Consciousness 4.3.1 - Mental Consciousness is Self-Cognizant" 4.3.2 Cessation of Self-Cognition 4.4 Proof of Self-Cognition 5 Systematization: Yogacara 5.1 Yogacara and Its Two Schools 5.2 Self-Cognition in Early Yogacara 5.2.1 Self-Realization 5.2.2 The Self-Knowledge of Consciousness 5.3 Self-Cognition: Dignaga 5.3.1 Self-Cognition as a Type of Perception 5.3.2 Self-Cognition and Other Types of Perception 5.3.3 Self-Cognition and the Dual Appearance of Cognition 5.4 Cognition of Self-Cognition: Dharmapala 5.5 Later Development 6 Conclusion Appendix: Dates of Important Authors Bibliography
This article focuses on a newly discovered archival document, a letter to Hitler by Taixu in Augu... more This article focuses on a newly discovered archival document, a letter to Hitler by Taixu in August 1937. This letter reflects the interesting interaction between Buddhism and the then German ideology, National Socialism (often called Nazi). It will help us understand the status and role of Buddhism in Nazi Germany and its subtle relationship with German politics. It will also help us understand the complexity and multifaceted nature of the historical figure of Taixu.
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